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I’ve decided that I want to work for myself. I came to this realization several years ago when each time I looked for work it was with a half-hearted sense of urgency. Not because I didn’t want to change my job, I just didn’t want to work for anyone else.
However, I wasn’t ready to get rid of golden handcuffs just yet. I also, didn’t want to work for anyone else ever again. I hated that my employers were in charge of promoting me, or not. Of giving me a raise, or not. Not my current employer-ANY employer. The longer I worked for other people the more I felt a sense of desolation, frustration, and irritation that no matter how hard I worked there were people literally standing in the way of my promotions and my money. I wanted to call the shots. I discovered that I needed to prove something to myself.
So, I put together a plan and here it is.
Year Number 1:
- First, I decided on an idea-what was it I wanted to do? What did I have a passion for? Would it create enough opportunities that I could generate decent income? I chose blogging. I had no freaking idea what I was doing.
- Then, I started blogging. I discovered that blogging is not just writing good content it is the active process of creating contacts with like minded people and people associated with these like minded individuals.
- Learned new skills-I began to learn new skills such as SEO management, scheduling my social media, putting together a blog, getting a subscriber list together, consistently writing good content, and collaborating with others. The list is much longer, but I don’t want to write a several thousand word post.
- I created opportunities in my real life job with knowledge and skills gained from my new career. I spoke at my regional conference about personal finances and collaborated with a colleague who works in Kansas to put that session together.
- Put a very detailed budget together. I needed a very clear framework and idea of what I was working towards. It wasn’t enough to have a vague idea. I’m talking about getting rid of the Golden Handcuffs. That’s a big deal. I needed very clear, concrete, and manageable goals that I felt I could achieve.
- Acknowledged my fear-Of staying in my current situation which has really begun to affect my frame of mind…in a bad way. I also had to acknowledge my fear of going out on my own. I had to think about what will make me happiest at this moment in time.
- Be honest about being happy that I stayed in my job during a horrible job market. I really am so proud of myself for making a very hard choice and making it work. I am very blessed to be in the job that I’m in and appreciate my colleagues-many of whom, are friends. I appreciate my bosses, and I really appreciate the opportunities that I’ve gotten because I stayed in my current position.
- Work HARDER at my current job! This is very important. I read Quitter by Jon Acuff and I’ve read a couple of other books about people making the transition to working for themselves. He and other authors who have done this make the point that you must make sure that you work HARDER for the job that you currently have. You should be working hard anyway. But, the idea is to step up your game because how can you be successful in your own business if you disrespect your current job? I have shifted my daily schedule and am getting up EARLY. I won’t mention how early in this post. My goal is to get to my office at least 30 minutes earlier so that I can work harder at my job and make sure that I’m treating it with the respect it deserves.
Year Number 2
- Commit-Once I established what I wanted to do I knew I could focus on the end game and begin to work on a plan.
- Create a business plan-I’m working on this right now.
- I created a budget. I thought about what my budget would look like and what I wanted to save for, pay on, and a ton of other important things.
- I found a CPA in my neighborhood who is highly respected and I will be requesting detailed information on the services offered by this CPA and the costs.
- Looked at health insurance. For me it makes no sense to go without insurance it’s a non-negotiable. I appreciate the way that the State of Colorado put together a separate insurance exchange website that actually works. All of my budgets include this line item. Period. I am thinking about paying it for the year once I begin working for myself.
- I then thought about how I would structure my work days. I don’t want to be in my pajamas all day. In fact I want to dress up everyday and go to nice coffee shops and work! Seriously. I also want to go to the gym. So, I had to put together a structured daily schedule.
- I don’t want all of my eggs in one basket so I looked at diversifying my incoming income. I have found a great number of tasks that I can do that will generate a decent income.
- Networked-I let people know what my intention is
- Maintained consistency
- Changed my approach to the logistics of blogging. Basically, I need to create some best practices (business practices) I am putting together some protocols that I can communicate to other bloggers, my readers, and businesses who contact me. I want them to be clear on what to expect from me. It has been really challenging getting used to how much work blogging takes. I haven’t been happy with some of my response times to inquiries and other incoming emails. My new process will be an adjustment but I think it will work well in the future
- Set an invoicing protocol. I’ve been relaxed about that too because this was a hobby, it’s not anymore.
- Set a time frame for completing the transition. Clearly I need to consistently make a certain amount of income BEFORE leaving. I want to make at least the minimum amount that I’m aiming for-for at least 6 months. I do have a very specific time frame that I’m working with so I’m excited to see what happens.
- Actively paying off debt and cutting down on my regular monthly expenses without destroying my quality of life.
- Save an emergency fund. Again, this is a non-negotiable. I am still thinking about how much I need to save.
- Learn to use what I have and live on less-even if I end up making more!
As I go through this process I’m amazed by people who are able to start their own businesses quickly. There is so much to think about and consider. I think that one also has to be careful about over thinking the process. If you over think the process you may begin to doubt yourself and not take the leap of faith in yourself.
I’m taking this decision very seriously, and if it sucks-I can always look for work!
I take this risk to reignite my soul. How cool is that!?
Are you working for yourself? What was the hardest thing that you did? The easiest?
What surprised you? Is working for yourself what you expected?
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When I started it was because I was so annoyed with my workplace. I didn’t plan anything, had almost nothing saved and had $20,000 of debt to go. It was a HUGE RISK and in hindsight had I known I would have done that, I would have saved up more money at least…
Things worked out but I think a planning approach is smarter than the way I did it.
Everything turned out as I expected, but it was also because I found a mentor to help me. You might want to consider talking to someone to get an idea of what it’s going to be like for you.
I think everything worked out because it was time for you to go. I’ve been feeling the same way about where I work. I’m just tired. This year I am buckling down and getting my shit together so that I can stop whining about how I’m not happy with my situation. I will still have debt when I leave and that was part of why I stayed for so long-the idea of having debt and working for myself really freaked me out. So, I just accounted for it in my budgeting and I feel a lot more confident and comfortable with moving ahead with my plan. Thanks for the suggestion of getting a mentor. One of the big freelance writers in Denver has kindly offered to give me advice, etc. I plan on taking him up on it.
What a great, comprehensive breakdown. I’m looking to work for myself within in the next five years. I’ll certainly have to figure out my own way, but this is fabulous!
Michelle, I had to have really clear benchmarks or else I would lose focus..and chicken out. I’m the type of person who needs very clear information so that I focus and work my plan. This is similar to how I prepared to go to Paris for 6 months. I got super focused (obsessed), thought about every possible scenario, then I hustled. I’m pretty nervous because this is a big risk, but I think after I start getting some clients I’ll feel a lot more confident about things.
Michele, some thirty five years ago I started on my own as a tax and estates lawyer. It was the best decision I ever made. It is often hard to do it alone, but it is well worth it. Your checklist will ensure that you will not be isolated and that you will be networking. Meet people, network and always put your client’s need ahead of your own. Also, be on top of billing and do it timely with follow up. Let me know if you have any questions.
Thank you Steven for your encouragement and advice. It is a little scary to me but I’m going to start small and build from there! You may hear from me later in the year as things start to pick up.
Great post Michelle. Last year when I was figuring out my 3 year plan I finally made the decision to work toward becoming a full time blogger withing 3 years. Primarily because I want to be a stay at home mom when I do have kids. Your list is super helpful. I am now following your blog and I look froward to seeing your growth. 🙂
We are on the same page! A huge part of why I want to do this transition now is because I want to have children and I don’t want to pay for babysitters. I’ve been thinking about this for a LOOONG time and finally I just got feed up enough where I decided to take the plunge. Thanks for the support-I’ll need it!